The five heroes appeared on the teleporter pad, blinking to clear the annoying blue spots coating their vision. The Man of Steel was beckoning to them from the monitoring deck just overhead, one hand resting heroically on his hip. He looked like he was posing for a photograph or something. Well, that was Superman. Always the perfect hero.
Flash sped to the elevator across from the teleporter pad, then held the doors open and tapped his foot impatiently while the others followed him more slowly. "Come on, guys. Supes probably wants us to fill out a report or something," he announced, rolling his eyes under his mask. Filling out reports on every single mission he went on was one of his least favorite tasks.
"Not that we'll have much to tell him about this mission," Oliver said, depressed. "Except that some kid stopped the bad guys before we could even get there, then acted like he knew us." He was still slightly annoyed that whoever the kid had been, he'd almost forgot to say "bye" to him, after saying "goodbye" to all the others like he had.
"And that Captain Cold is a stuck-up-" Wildcat began gruffly, crossing his arms.
"Actually, that's a lot to tell him," Dinah interrupted quickly, shooting her mentor a pointed look as the elevator started to move upwards. "Didn't any of you notice that whoever he was, he had my and Flash's powers?"
"Oh, yeah," Wally mused, frowning a little as he thought this fact over. "Plus, he called you and me… his parents." He looked quickly over at his pranking partner, who was glaring fiercely at him. Green Arrow obviously didn't like thinking about his girlfriend having a possible kid with someone else. Flash gulped nervously.
"And what was his problem, calling me 'Grandpa'? I'm not that old!" Ted complained loudly.
The translucent glass doors glided smoothly and soundlessly open, and the Leaguers stepped out. Mr. Terrific was hard at work on a crossword puzzle on one computer screen, while J'onn watched over several missions. Superman was waiting for them, arms crossed over his chest.
"Hey, Supes." Flash sped over to Mr. T., boots squeaking on the slick floor. "What's up, T.?"
"Nothing really, Flash. What's a seven-letter word for a composition that imitates or misrepresents someone's style?" the hero asked him, looking absorbed in his puzzle.
"Uh…is it…'no clue' with an exclamation point at the end?" the Scarlet Speedster guessed, clearly not knowing.
"Never mind. It definitely has to be 'lampoon'. Why didn't I think of that before?" the genius muttered, typing the word out.
"So, what happened on your mission?" Superman asked. "You should start writing out reports for the files."
"Told you so," Flash mouthed at Canary.
She rolled her eyes back at him.
Green Arrow cleared his throat, looking jealous that she wasn't giving him any attention.
"Actually, something kind of weird happened," Zatanna spoke up, a puzzled frown on her pretty face. "The villains who were robbing my show were already stopped when we got down there."
"What?"
"Some dude in a cool green and black costume was beating Captain Cold to a bloody pulp," Flash explained helpfully. "Hey, I think I just made a joke. Cool, Cold? Get it?"
Everyone ignored him.
"A vigilante?" Mr. Terrific wondered, exchanging a look with J'onn.
"That's just what we don't need. Some dissatisfied citizen who decides that he needs to take the law into his own hands," Superman sighed wearily.
"When we first showed up, he was blasting Trickster and Mirror Master through a wall with a Canary Cry," Green Arrow added. "Then he ran away at sonic speed. He looked like he was as fast as Flash."
"I don't think so Ollie. They don't call me the Fastest Man Alive for nothing," Flash boasted proudly cracking a smile.
"Let me get this straight. This person had Wally's and Dinah's powers?" Superman studied the two of them with intense scrutiny, looking slightly confused.
Wally shifted uncomfortably, imagination insisting that the Kryptonian was using his infamous ex-ray vision. "Uh…right, Supes," he answered a little nervously.
"It looks like this is not an ordinary dissatisfied citizen," J'onn mused softly in his thick Martian accent.
"Apparently," Terrific agreed, turning back to his crossword puzzle.
"That isn't even the weirdest part," Zatanna put in. "The boy said something strange before he ran off."
"What did he say?" Superman questioned.
"Uh…something like, 'Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad. Bye, Grandpa. Bye, Zatanna. Oh, and bye to you too, Mr. Arrow.'" Flash quoted it perfectly, raising one eyebrow under his mask as he spoke.
There was a small silence.
"Flash, I'm serious," Superman reprimanded him after a moment. "I need to know what he really said. It could be important, and we can use it to figure out who he was."
"Did he mention his name?" J'onn inquired.
"I'm serious, too, Supes," Flash retorted with a scowl. "That's exactly what he said. Really. I swear on a Lightspeed Energy Bar!" He looked at his other teammates for help.
"Flash-" Superman began.
"He's right, Superman. That's what he said," Zatanna interrupted, nodding to empathize it.
"Now I've heard everything," Mister Terrific announced, fingers typing in another answer on his puzzle.
"He said it just like that," Oliver agreed. "His voice sounded exactly like Wally's."
"So you mean to tell me that he called you all family of his?" Superman's tone was incredulous. I haven't heard anything about Flash and Black Canary having a kid together. And gossip usually manages to circulate in no time around here…
"Yeah. He called me his dad!" Flash stabbed a thumb against the lightning bolt logo on his chest, eyes round. "And Dinah his mom. Creepy, huh?"
Canary elbowed him in the side with a glare that would rival even Batman's. "It might be best for you to stop talking now."
"Yes, ma'am!" he squeaked.
"What do you think this means, J'onn?" Superman asked the Martian.
"I'm not sure. Why didn't you follow him, Flash?" he asked.
"Uh…because I was kind of shell shocked?" Wally tried to make the excuse sound plausible, but failed miserably. He didn't want to mention that the kid, whoever he had been, had seemed to be even faster than he would ever even dream of being.
"Really," Arrow said dubiously, not seeming convinced.
"We'll have to keep an eye out for him in case he shows up again," Superman vowed. "Why don't all of you type out your take on the situation, while I go talk to some of the others about what happened." He lifted off the floor and shot away in a blur of blue and red.
xxxxx
Zatanna met up with Dr. Light, Fire, and Ice in the cafeteria, where Fire and Dr. Light were eating light lunches. "Hi," she greeted them, placing her tray on the round table and sitting down.
"Where have you been?" Ice asked curiously, not in a mean way. "I thought the three of us were supposed to meet here for lunch an hour ago."
"So did I, actually," Dr. Light admitted. "Did you change the time or something?"
"No, I had a mission with Flash, Arrow, Canary, and Wildcat. Sorry that I'm late." She sipped her iced mocha gratefully, relishing its cold taste.
"Flash? He's so handsome," Fire sighed dreamily, Brazilian accent sounding exotic.
"You should tell him how you feel," Dr. Light instructed her fiery friend. "Maybe he feels the same."
"I don't think so. He could have his pick of any other woman. Why would he want me?" Bea said sadly, picking at her salad with a pouting frown.
"You should try at least," Ice told her friend, looking over as Flash himself strolled in and headed over to get his second lunch of the day. "You don't give yourself enough credit sometimes, Bea."
"Thanks, Tora," the green-haired hero smiled, greatful for her friend's encouragement.
"So, what happened on your mission, Zatanna?" Dr. Light quizzed.
"Basically, some kid with Flash's and Black Canary's powers showed up and called them his parents." Zatanna summed it up in a nutshell.
Hoshi's lips formed an 'O' of surprise. "Are you serious?"
"Wouldn't someone have noticed if Dinah had been pregnant with Wally's kid for nine months?" Tora spoke quietly, leaning forward over the table as she gossiped.
"That's the thing. I doubt that he was really their kid. Both of them looked clueless when he said that," Zatanna told them.
"I wish I could have gone," Bea said wistfully. "I bet that was definitely something to see."
"Zatanna, come back to the monitoring deck right away," Mr. Terrific announced over the intercom. "Dr. Fate and Inza, please report as well."
"What? You have to be kidding me." Zatanna said in shock. The sorceress' shoulders slumped. "I just finished a mission. They'd better not be giving me another one so soon."
"I guess we'll have to reschedule our lunch for tomorrow," Dr. Light said with a shrug. "Good luck."
"Thanks, I'll need it." With a sigh, Zatanna stood and headed back to the monitoring room.